BBC Music Magazine
Chamber Choice: 'These are, in sum, sincere and poised accounts, a fitting tribute to the 'chaste and faultless' character of the composer and his music.'
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InfoDad.com
'The excellent SACD sound provides an aura of both intimacy and clarity to the sonatas, and the performances are so well paced and transparently balanced that it is hard to imagine better readings.'
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AllMusic.com
'Britain's Avison Ensemble has a homogeneous, silvery tone that serves the music well, emphasizing its classic qualities...'
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Previous Linn issues from the Avison Ensemble and Pavlo Beznosiuk have
enhanced our expectations and enriched our appreciation of Corelli's
groundbreaking instrumental music. Now bringing their former winning ways to
the Church Sonatas, Opp. 1 and 3, their two-year long Corellian pilgrimage
reaches its conclusion, in performances of captivating freshness, vitality and
impressive depth of understanding (the earlier discs were reviewed in February,
March and November 2013). As Charles Avison (after whom this group is named)
wrote in 1752, ‘the immortal works of Corelli are in the hands of everyone; and
accordingly we find that from him many of our best modern composers have generally
deduced their elements of harmony'. It was a discerning, if not entirely
accurate remark, since at the time, copies of Corelli's works, far from being
‘in the hands of everyone', were coveted, bartered for and sometimes even
fought over as musicians everywhere pursued his latest compositions.

Corelli
published his Op. 1 set of 12 Sonate di Chiesa in Rome in 1681. Soon
afterwards, they were being simultaneously issued by publishing houses
throughout Europe, and as Simon D. I. Fielding's instructive booklet notes
relate, they ‘remained in print throughout the eighteenth century, a feat
unrivalled by any earlier collection'. Corelli himself did not categorize these
pieces as ‘Church' Sonatas, though shortly after their publication, an entry in
Sébastien de Brossard's Dictionnaire described the genre as ‘proper
for the Church - beginning usually with a grave and majestic movement, suited
to the sanctity and dignity of such a place, after which comes a gay and
animated fugue ...'. Scored for two violins, played here by Beznosiuk and
Caroline Balding, with basso continuo provided by Richard Tunnicliffe and Paula
Chateauneuf, precisely what Corelli expected as far as the bass instrument was
concerned still remains unclear. It was usual at the time to employ either
archlute or, more commonly, violone, though a cello has been used throughout
this series. The important keyboard continuo is once again thoughtfully
realized on harpsichord and organ by Roger Hamilton. However, it is Beznosiuk's
daring leadership and audacious virtuosity that constantly brings these
superlative accounts to life with palpable urgency and realism. It would be
misleading to single out any individual sonata for special comment, but amongst
the best known, and typical of the series, is Sonata No. 9, in the notoriously
affecting key of F minor, its opening Grave section made even more
piquant by the liberal use of diminished seventh chords in the bass line, over
which the two violins weave an inexpressibly beautiful dialogue. Small wonder,
then, that the historian Sir John Hawkins wrote in 1776 that it ‘had drawn a
tear from many an eye', yet the succeeding Vivace, in barbed fugal
style, and the final Allegro reveal the fiery brilliance of Corelli's
creativity, and there's no one better equipped to convey its sense of frisson
and passion than Beznosiuk. It was normal for Corelli to leave the penultimate
movements of the Church Sonatas unembellished and one of the most engaging
features of the Avison Ensemble's performances is that while there's nothing
showy or ostentatious about its use of ornamentation, it always seems genuinely
spontaneous. That registers in virtually every slow movement, but these
performances are also firmly rooted in period scholarship, too. Beznosiuk must
have read Georg Muffat's instructional guide on how to play these pieces. The
opening movements are nearly always interspersed with sudden slower
interjections and these were, says Muffat David Ponsford
Nimbus (a student of Corelli's, incidentally), to be played fulsomely and
dramatically: ‘In the opening Sonatas and Fugues and in the affecting Graves
that are interpolated, the Italian manner is to be chiefly observed ... those
experienced in this art will readily understand this.' As for rival
performances, the only serious competition here is the excellent Chandos
Chaconne survey by the Purcell Quartet, which brings much fine playing, though
tempos are less extreme in fast sections, while recorded sound is brightly
focused and clear but lacks the spatial realism of Linn's production. Jakob
Lindberg's authoritative playing on both theorbo and archlute adds an extra
dimension to the continuo's tonal palette and this set has long been a strong
contender here. On balance, though, I prefer the Avison's more spontaneous and
vital approach, which never lets historical or stylistic correctness obstruct
enjoyment of the music. There remains Enrico Gatti's patchy and uneven
recording on Tactus with the Ensemble Aurora. Though decently recorded, these
accounts seem four-square and uninspired beside the Avison performances, which
must now be the natural first choice here. The last word, however, belongs to
Roger North, who memorably described these works as ‘a true pantomime or
resemblance of humanity in all its states, actions, passions, and affections'.
He could just as easily have been describing these mesmerizing performances
themselves - there is none better!